Count on a Croft
by snowflake14
Summary: This series of chapters explores Lara's life and the incredible measures she is willing to take to find out what really happened to her father. A story different to that of the original, new characters and totally different life experiences.


TOMB RAIDER

 **CHAPTER 1** – LARA"

Lara stood in silence on the edge of the London Bridge as the clock struck midnight, although her body was calm and relaxed her mind was anything but that. Today marks the day that her father Richard Croft went missing five years ago, Lara still to this day has mixed thoughts about what supposedly happened to her father. She knew the last time he left it was different from any other time before, he seemed different in the days leading up to his departure. It was as if he knew he wouldn't return, officially on paper Richard Croft is dead even though he merely disappeared without a trace and presumed dead.

Lara gazed into the starry reflection on the water below her, the constant flow of thoughts accelerating in her mind drowned out the sounds of all traffic around her. Richard Croft was the only family she had left up until he disappeared, and after so many years of living in denial Lara knew it was time for her to find out the truth of what really happened.

Lara stepped back from the railing and took a deep breath followed by a long exhale, it was time to get off this bridge and go home she thought. Lara turned and began making her way down the path when she heard the faint sound of a grunt close by. She gasped and stopped suddenly, frantically looking around her as she thought she was alone. And that's when Lara saw him, a man standing on the edge of the bridge looking down into the water seemingly unaware that Lara was staring at him.

Hello" she called out

The man didn't blink an eye, he knew she was there but that didn't faze him in the slightest.

OI"Lara shouted

The man slowly looked up and then glared deeply into Lara's eyes; he clearly didn't want any company.

"Leave" he grunted

"No, what's your name?"

"None of your god dam business"

Lara saw past his rude manner, she was genuinely concerned for him. She tried several attempts at conversation and was mostly dismissed until she said that everyone has a shitty story to tell. This sentiment made the man somewhat perk up.

It ends here; I can't live without them anymore"

"Without who?"She asked

"My wife and son, they killed them, without mercy, all for what, because they didn't get what they wanted. It's been too long, I can't live another day let alone another five years without them" the man blurted in distress."

"That's awful... Who's they, who did this" Lara said

The man went on to tell the story of how he worked for an agency specialising in national security when he was threatened by a group of men who called themselves "tomb raiders" and they demanded access to sensitive information on the ruins in Peru. Under force he gave it up only to find it didn't fully contain what these men wanted. They thought he had withheld documents from them and was covering for somebody, and as punishment they killed his family.

The mention of Peru made Lara's heart skip a beat; she knew that was where her father was heading when he disappeared. Her father's quest to Peru was to uncover the secrets held in the ancient ruins, even though this was five years prior Lara couldn't help herself and she badgered the man for answers and more information about the men.

"They were looking for a certain artefact, the list I gave them contained names of the explores who were researching these items specifically" he went on

"Tell me the names!" Lara shouted

The man stuttered and couldn't understand why she wanted to know, he barely got a chance to answer when Lara began demanding an answer.

"Well my memory is vague it was a long time ago, I only remember some last names, errr, Smith, Johnson, Reid and a Croft."

Lara's stomach dropped, she almost felt as if she'd been hit by something hard. She was both mortified and exhilarated at the same time, but one thing was for sure. She wanted answers and she wasn't going to stop until she knew the truth and how her father got caught up in this mess.


End file.
